What do you know? “Erdoğan says America was discovered by Muslims, not Columbus

Erdoğan says America was discovered by Muslims, not Columbus

Hurriyet Daily News

America was discovered by Muslims in 1178, not by Christopher Columbus in 1492, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has claimed, vowing to build a mosque in Cuba if authorities issue permission. In the same speech, he slammed those who use Islam for political means

in other news:

Turkey Erdogan palace costs to soar

BBC News | Europe | World Edition

A controversial 1,000-room palace built for Turkey’s president will cost even more than the original £385m ($615m) price tag, the BBC has been told.

US Vice President Joe Biden due to visit Turkey on Nov 21

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden will have talks in Turkey on Nov. 21 as part of his trip including Morocco and Ukraine, according to diplomatic sources

Turkish gov’t to provide temporary ID cards for employment of Syrian refugees

With Turkey struggling to meet the basic needs of around 1.7 million Syrian refugees, the government is now planning to issue temporary identity cards for Syrians

U.S. condemns attack on American sailors in Istanbul

Mashable! by Megan Specia

Turkey-attack

Three American sailors were assaulted in Istanbul on Wednesday in what the United States is calling an “action that disrespects Turkey’s reputation for hospitality.”

US soldiers attacked with dye in Istanbul by nationalist youth group

A group of Turkish nationalist students attacked NATO soldiers in the touristic Eminönü district of Istanbul, putting sacks over their heads and throwing dye on them

US Chamber of Commerce to open Istanbul office to boost ties

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has decided to open an off Istanbul office in a bid to boost trade and investments between the Turkey and the United States.

Parameters of Engagement and Turkey’s Limits in the Coalition Against ISIS

German Marshall Fund of the United States, November 13, 2014 Mehmet Yegin & Hasan Selim Ozertem * Turkey’s role in a coalition against the Islamic State group has not yet been determined. This brief discusses the dynamics that really matter in the decision-making process regarding Turkey’s participation in coalitions in order to provide insight into

Making (Non)Sense of Turkey’s Policy on Kobane

GTE Commentary (Istituto Affari Internazionali) No. 16, November 2014, 2 p. by Nathalie Tocci * Turkey is pursuing three goals in Syria: eliminating Bashar al-Asad, weakening the Kurdish Workers Party (PKK) and defeating the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). The snag is that these three goals are incompatible, at least in the short

Turkey, Kobane and the Kurdish question

open Democracy News Analysis – by Sinan Ekim

The US wants Turkey to join the military effort against Islamic State at Kurdish-dominated Kobane, across the Syrian border—but Ankara’s focus is the Kurds within its own.

Kobane, a Kurdish enclave along the Syrian-Turkish border since July 2012, now stands at the epicentre of the international struggle against the al-Qaeda splinter group Islamic State (IS).

Tagged in: Al-Nusra Front, ankara, Anti-Americanism, Associated Press, Ayn al-Arab, bosphorus, cnn, iraqi kurdistan, Islamic State, istanbul, joe biden, Kurdish people, Kurdish population, Kurds in Syria, List of diplomatic missions of the United States, President of Turkey, protest, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Sailor, syria, turkey, united states, United States Navy, white house

Erkan's Field Diary